Within the NIEER’s newsletter this was one of the
issues addressed; This article discusses and reinforces much of what we have been talking about this week, as well as what Dr. Grace discussing in relationship to America's early childhood programs compared to those in Finland and other Nordic Countries. I will just highlight a part of it....T Retrieved from: http://www.lienfoundation.org/pdf/news/sw_report.pdf
WHERE DOES YOUR COUNTRY RANK IN EARLY EDUCATION?
The data are really incontrovertible,” explains
Sharon Kagan, a professor of early childhood and family policy at Columbia
University in the US. “Three strands of research combine to support the
importance of the early years. From neuro-scientific research, we understand
the criticality of early brain development; from social science research, we
know that high quality programmes improve children’s readiness for school and
life; and from econometric research, we know that high quality programs save society significant amounts of money
over time. Early childhood contributes to creating the kinds of workforces that
are going to be needed in the twenty-first century.”
There are also broader reasons to invest in
preschool. At one level, it helps facilitate greater female participation in
the workforce, which bolsters economic growth. Early childhood development is
also a major force in helping overcome issues relating to child poverty and
educational disadvantage.2 “It is about those very young children who are going
to grow up as successful lifelong learners and citizens making an economic
contribution to society,” says Christine Pascal, director of the Centre for
Research in Early Childhood (CREC), an independent research organization. “This
is especially so in very unequal societies where you get generational and
cyclical repetition of poverty and low achievement.”
The
report goes onto to state that Nordic countries perform best at preschool and
European countries dominate the rankings.
In general
the leading countries in this Index have the following elements in place for
their preschool systems.
·
A comprehensive early childhood development and
promotion strategy, backed up with a legal right to such education.
·
Universal enrollment of children in at least a
year of preschool at ages five or six, with nearly universal enrolment between
the ages of three and five.
·
Subsidies to ensure access for underprivileged
families.
·
A well-defined preschool curriculum, along with
clear health and safety standards.
·
Clear parental involvement and outreach.
·
A broad socioeconomic environment that ensures
that children are healthy and well nourished when they enter preschool.
·
Where provision is privatized, the cost of such
care is affordable relative to average wages
·
A high bar for preschool educators, with
specific qualification requirements. This is often backed up with commensurate
wages, as well as low student-teacher ratios.
Another interesting article I found expressed an important issue
in regard to current thinking; looking at policies related to early childhood
education teachers. There is a serious mismatch between the expectations we
place on early childhood teachers, and the quality and relevance of available
preparation, supports for learning on the job, and compensation and benefits, (Whitebrook,
& Ryan, 2011). Within the policy brief it expresses concern that there is
not enough research to determine the content and quality of teacher preparation
programs. One of the recommendations is to revamp the content and structure of
teacher higher education and professional development to include more
practice-based opportunities and integrate a focus on area related to brain
research language acquisition and diversity.
I thought the policy
fact sheet highlighted many important issues as far as the need to have
teachers who are well trained and prepared and knowledgeable. It brings about
the importance of compensation.
Again another article .....
One Economist brought
about another good point about why it is important to invest in quality early
childhood programs. Beyond the positive effects we have been discussing, it
brought up the point that having, excellent early childhood programs locally is
good for business. People who are looking to move into new areas to live are
looking and evaluating the early childhood programs within the locality.
The NIEER website
shares continued research information in regard to current funding, programs
and state initiatives to provide quality preschool programs. The website is
comprehensive and reports current research, trends, programs, policies in
regard to implications to early childhood programs, and the children and
families they serve.
I read an interesting
article; Holding back to get ahead.
More parents are redshirting' their kids. A growing
number of parents sending their children, particularly their boys, to
kindergarten at 6 years old instead of the traditional age of 5.
It’s a practice known as
“redshirting” — a term culled from the practice of postponing college athletes’
participation in competitive games. Experts say it’s becoming increasingly
popular among parents of boys, as girls mature and develop more quickly in
their younger years.
I found the coined term red shirting
interesting. I sent three of my own children to kindergarten all girls when
they were six. Each of them had August September birthdays. I understand the
importance of parents feeling like their children need to be emotionally as
mature and “ready,” for kindergarten as their peers. Interestingly enough I am
not sure it is or was the best decision. There were definite pros to having my
own children start school when they were six. But there were also draw-backs.
I think it is often hard to look to the future and think about what your
child’s maturity level will be like when they are sixteen years old. The
drawbacks for each of my girls was that once they reach their junior senior year of
high school they were totally bored with school. I believe this was partially
because they were older. It was almost like they became as or more mature then
their peers. So knowing what I do now, I am not always sure I would of held the
girls back.
Resources:
Starting well: Benchmarking
early education across the world (2009). A report from the Economist
Intelligence Unit. The Lein Foundation. Retrieved from: http://www.lienfoundation.org/pdf/news/sw_report.pdf
Whitebrook, M. Ryan, S.
(2012) Preschool Policy Facts. Degrees in Context:
Asking
the Right Questions about Preparing Skilled and Effective Teachers of Young
Children.
A
Boyd, (2012). Holding
back to get ahead. More parents are redshirting their kids.
Ashbury Park Press. Retrieved using the NIEER Web site to this link:
http://www.app.com/article/20120719/NJNEWS15/307190113/Holding-back-to-get-ahead-More-parents-are-redshirting-their-kids-in-early-grades.